Did you know...

1. Life is not fair. Get used to it.

2. The real world won't care as much as your school does about your self-esteem. It'll expect you to accomplish something before you feel good about yourself

5. No matter what your daddy says, you are not a princess...

7. If you think your teacher is tough, wait until you get a boss. He won't have tenure, so he'll tend to be a bit edgier. When you screw up, he's not going to as you how you FEEL about it.

9. Your school may have done away with winners and losers. Life hasn't.

11. After you graduate, you won't be competing against rivals who were raised to be wimps on the playground.

16. Your parents and your little brother are not as embarrassing as you think. What's embarrassing is ingratitude, rudeness, and sulkiness.

17. Your parents weren't as boring before you were born as they are now.

18. Life is not divided into semesters. And you don't get summers off.

21. You're offended? So what? No, really. So what?

22. You are not a victim. So stop whining.

24. Batman's girlfriend is right: "It's not who you are underneath, but what you do that defines you."

26. A moral compass does not come as standard equipment.

29. Learn to deal with hypocrisy.

33. Be nice to nerds. You may end up working for them. We all could. [additional remarks by Bill Swanson: a person who is nice to you but rude to the waiter, or to others, is not a nice person.]

37. Being connected does not mean you aren't clueless

38. Look people in the eye when you meet them...

39. People in black-and-white movies were in color in real life. And no, the world did not begin when you were born.

41. You are not the first and you are not the only one who has gone through.

44. Your colleagues are not necessarily your friends, and your friends aren't your family.

47. You are not perfect, and you don't have to be.

49. Don't forget to say thank you.

50. Enjoy this while you can.

from Charles J. Sykes's 50 rules kids won't learn in school : real world antidotes to feel-good education (New York: St. Martin's Press, 2007).